Ban Xang Hai Village

 A visit to Ban Xang Hai (the Whiskey village) is essential in a circuit in Laos if you want to savor excellent homemade alcohol. 

In accordance with its name, this village is well - known for wines, especially "Lao Lao". It is a traditional Laos whiskey made of rice. Besides, there are snake, spider, other creepy - crawly wines that are sold in bottles or in jars.

Ban Xang Hai is located near the Mekong River. It is a unique place in Luang Prabang. As this village is right on the road to Pak Ou caves, this allows you to visit it before entering the caves.

Otherwise, there are three attractions in all in the village: silk weaving, production of whiskey and of Sa paper. It may be said that Laotian hand woven silks are much liked and appreciated by tourists. It takes about 4 weeks to produce the whiskey, to look at how to do it with your own eyes and buy this alcoholic creation, is special. If you prefer to the weaving of Laotian silk, you can buy them or Sa paper products, all manufactured locally.

You would be surprised that there are beautiful temples, shrines, and relics decorated here. All this has drawn an interesting central district that we cannot find anywhere else in Laos. You also might meet the monks who live here. While opening the local school, children will rush out who are very cute and always fascinated by foreign visitors. There are some small local restaurants where the food is quite delicious and cheap.

The people in this Whiskey village are really friendly and hospitable. You would be warmly welcomed there’re for sure. After a tiring journey, you can relax in a pontoon boat to contemplate the sunset towards the banks of the Mekong River by the flow of water.